Sandy Sanchez, the goalkeeper for the Cuban national soccer team, defected while the team was in Houston on Tuesday, joining four of his teammates who escaped the chains of communist slavery last week in Miami.
Gold Cup: Cuban national team goalkeeper escapes after loss to Canada
Cuban national soccer team goalkeeper Sandy Sánchez Mustelier left the team at the Gold Cup after a defeat suffered against Canada with a score of four goals to two.
“Goalkeeper Sandy Sánchez left the Cuban team delegation last night in Houston after the last match of the 2023 Gold Cup,” journalist Francys Romero posted on social media based on a report by Alexander Ramírez Tápanes.
With Sánchez, there have been 35 defections of Cuban athletes from different sports so far this year.
Romero adds that the five departures of Cuban football players during the current edition of the Gold Cup constitutes a new record, surpassing the four from the 2015 and 2019 editions.
Sandy Sánchez, who is 29, has been the starting goalkeeper for the Cuban national team for the past decade. He participated in events such as the 2013 FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Turkey and was a member of the squad that won the bronze medal at the Central American and 2014 Caribbean Games in Veracruz. In the current edition of the Gold Cup, he served as a substitute for Raiko Arozarena.
Continue reading (in Spanish) HERE.